Gareth Widdop, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck and Latrell Mitchell are sure to go early in SuperCoach Draft.

Rugby League

SuperCoach NRL Draft player rankings

by Wilson Smith

4th Feb 2019 5:16 PM
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THE NRL season is less than 50 days away, so now is the time to start researching and assembling people to join your Draft league for 2019.

While SuperCoaches are busy balancing their salary caps and picking which cheapies to start with, Draft players are wondering who they should choose with their first picks.

For those of you who have never played SuperCoach Draft before, you and a group of other players take turns picking players to make a starting team, but there is a catch. Unlike SuperCoach Classic, in a Draft league once you own a player, no one else in your league can take that player.

While there is no salary cap limiting your team, you do have to draft carefully to assemble the best possible team.

Rather than getting guns, cheapies and PODs, you'll want to just draft the best possible team, and not worry about a salary cap or making money. Someone you would not have even considered in your Classic team may just be a priority target in Draft.

With all that being said, I've gone ahead and ranked the top 10 players in each position for SuperCoach Draft formats.

The top players are not too different from Classic, but you have to remember that you probably won't be able to pick the best player in each position.

Cleary could become the best halfback in SuperCoach.

HALFBACK

I'm starting off with halfback, because for Draft purposes it is probably the lowest depth position. You've got to remember that when a player is drafted, you can't have them, so if you leave the halfback pick too late you could be stuck with someone like Mitch Moses as your starting halfback. Your best options at halfback are SJ, Nathan Cleary and DCE, but these are premium options and will probably be taken in the first two rounds of drafting. If you want one of these guys in your team, you'll probably have to spend some significant capital to get them, but they'll definitely be worth it!

Up next is hookers, which like HFB, 5/8 and FB all have limited quality options. Unlike some others however, only Damien Cook and Cameron Smith should be drafted in the first two rounds, so you can afford to wait a bit longer on someone like Josh Hodgson or Apisai Koroisau. There is some value picks out there if you end up waiting too long on a hooker, like Victor Radley or even someone like Elijah Taylor.

Damien Cook will be one of the first players drafted. Picture: Brett Costello

FIVE-EIGHTH

While there are limited quality options, there are more than at halfback, but the best of the position should all be drafted very quickly. By the time the second or third rounds are done you can probably expect seven of these guys to be gone! Kalyn Ponga and SJ are something of a coin flip and should both be gone in the first round, while Cameron Munster, Cody Walker, Gareth Widdop and Anthony Milford will follow shortly after.

The last of the key low depth positions, you can expect at least three of these fullbacks to be gone in the first round of drafting. The drop off in tiers from the guns is pretty significant, so this is another position you'll want to have covered pretty quickly. But like other positions, if you miss out on one of the guns early on, there is value to be found elsewhere.

Front row is a bit of an odd position in that there is more depth than the previous positions mentioned, but a lot less quality options than you'd expect. This is because of the way the FRF position is utilised in real life NRL, with very few front rowers commanding huge minutes, and others starting on the bench. You therefore want to make sure you have at least one gun FRF who plays at least 55 minutes, with a decent PPM. If you can get at least one player in this top 10, you'll be in pretty good stead. If you can get an NRL second rower or lock who you can slot in at FRF, like Tevita Pangai Jr, that is also a great option.

Okay now we're into the most stacked position in SuperCoach, there are so many relevant options at the 2RF position with huge upside. If you can manage to get a couple of these guys and combine them with some solid value picks elsewhere, you've got part of the winning formula set. Jake Trbojevic and Jason Taumalolo should both go in the first round, but there is a tier break after that and the rest are a bit easier to get. If you do pick one of these guys early you may have to take another player a bit earlier than you'd like to avoid missing out on someone at those low depth positions.

Like FRF, the CTW position has a lot of depth, but also not as many quality options. I tend to avoid drafting a CTW at all in the first four rounds since they are by far the most inconsistent players for SuperCoach purposes. For the Draft capital required to get one of the guns, you could get a far more reliable FRF or 2RF. Unlike other positions though, you need to have four CTWs in your starting team, which makes finding value players even more important! Look for outside backs with decent base points and on good attacking teams, as these as the most reliable players at the position.